Live Review: The National, Luluc

It was a perfect end to the week out at Belvoir on Friday night for The National's sold out final Australian show, playing as part of the Perth International Arts Festival. Beautiful weather and stunning music made for a very pleasant evening, only made better by the classic one-at-every-show punter trying to sexily dance with her seemingly uncomfortable partner, even before the bands had started.
Support act Luluc, originally hailing from Melbourne but currently based in Brooklyn, played a chilled-out set with just the two members onstage swapping between various guitars; having recorded their soon-to-be-released second album with Aaron Dessner from The National, it seemed only fitting that they'd join them on this tour. The preview of their new song Without A Face went down a treat, and the rest of the new material gave a good indication of the excellent quality we have to look forward to on their new record.
Also based in Brooklyn, but originally from Cincinnati, five-piece indie rockers The National didn't disappoint. Swelling to seven members for the live shows and playing a hectic two-hour set, they gave an impressive performance that ended with lead singer Matt Berninger spending most of the encore in the audience, much to the delight of the crowd. Playing a good mix of old and new tracks, I Should Live In Salt from the new album was a personal highlight, and their classic Bloodbuzz Ohio had the majority of the highly excitable audience singing along at the top of their lungs. Ever-so-charming Berninger's voice was consistently brilliant throughout the show, his sweet baritone like warm melted caramel for slower track I Need My Girl. Final song of the night, Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks was played acoustically, which as you can probably imagine is usually quite difficult with an audience of that size. Not for these guys, though; the whole audience sang along and Berninger selected a lucky few members of the crowd to sing into the microphone, much to the amusement of everyone else. The vibe that came from this connection with the audience was incredible, and it was a credit to the band and the influence they so clearly possess. Finishing on this note was unlike anything this reviewer has witnessed before, and it'll be a long time before it's done this well again.